I miss my father. I miss my grandfather. I miss my home. And I miss my mother. But the thing is, for almost three years, I managed not to miss any of them. And then I spent that one day with that one girl. One day ... It was like she gave me her whole self, and somehow as a result, I gave her more of myself than I even realized there was to give. But then she was gone. And only after I'd been filled up by her, by that day, did I understand how empty I really was.

...the world feels so big when you're out in the wide open. It's like you don't have a place in it when you don't have a home." "Your place is right here," I whispered, laying down and hugging her close.

Sleep would be so welcome. A warm blanket of black to erase everything else. Sleep without dreams.

He looks at one of the pictures for a long time. Then he looks at me. "I'll keep you up here." He taps his temple. "Where you can't get lost.

Because if time can be fluid, then maybe something that is just one day can go on indefinitely

She said if she couldn't play, she had nothing left. What about me?

Her hands were freezing, just like they always were, so I warmed them, just like I always did.